This invention relates to the electrolytic treatment of liquids and, more particularly, this invention relates to an improved system for electrolytically treating aqueous solutions by causing dissolved solids to precipitate out of the solution.
Electrochemical flocculation of impure aqueous solutions has been known for many years, but no practical and economical method of treating large volumes of effluent has heretofore been found. With ever increasing standards of effluent purity being imposed on processing, industrial, and sewage treatment facilities, there is a strong need for an economical method of removing dissolved and other impurities from waste water, streams, or the like.
This problem has been recognized and a solution has been provided, especially for the removal of colloidal particles, by providing a spiraling insulating member wrapped around a cathode tube within an anode tube, as in Liggett, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,293,400 and 4,378,276.
However, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,293,400 and 4,378,276, aqueous solution containing dissolved solids passes through the cathode tubes without any provisions for maximizing liquid contact with the internal surface of the cathode tubes. Further, a plurality of anode and cathode tubes are needed in most cases for effective electrolytic treatment. This drastically increases the cost of treatment, especially for anion and cation removal. Structural features which further decrease the efficiency and increase the cost of the electrolytic treatment apparatus of U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,293,400 and 4,378,276 include the length of housing from which the outlet extends and the inlet manifold which do not contribute to the actual removal of dissolved anions and cations from the anode and cathode tubes.
Accordingly, there is a need for an efficient, economical, simply constructed and easily installed improved system for electrolytic treatment of water for maximizing liquid contact with the anode and cathode metal surfaces, as well as minimizing the number of treatment tubes required for a much improved efficiency. Further, the above-described shortcomings of the prior art eliminated by minimizing the required power for efficient operation and allowing the solution to travel from one tube to another when exposed to sequential electrical fields of different directions.
With the foregoing background of the invention in mind, and as the following description of the invention proceeds, it will be appreciated that the primary object of the present invention is to provide an improved system for electrolytic treatment of liquids, including aqueous solutions, which is free of the aforementioned and other such disadvantages.
It is another primary object of the invention to provide an improved system for electrolytic treatment of liquids which avoids the inadequacies of the prior art.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improved system for electrolytic treatment of liquids which maximizes liquid contact with the anode and cathode metal surfaces inherent in the structure of the invention.
It is another primary object of the invention to provide an improved system for electrolytic treatment of liquids which has at least one solid centrally located metallic rod partially wrapped with an inner helical insulator or spacer and enclosed within an inner metal tube which is in turn partially wrapped with an outer helical insulator or spacer and enclosed within an outer metal tube for forming the path of the liquid solution to be treated.
It is another primary object of the invention to provide an improved system for electrolytic treatment of liquids which has at least one innermost metallic tube partially wrapped with an inner helical insulator or spacer and enclosed within an inner metal tube which is in turn partially wrapped with an outer helical insulator or spacer and enclosed within an outer metallic tube for forming the path of the aqueous solution to be treated.
It is another primary object of the invention to provide an improved system for electrolytic treatment of liquids which has at least one innermost metal tube with a plurality of liquid passage apertures passing therethrough, partially wrapped with an inner helical insulator or spacer and enclosed within an inner metal tube which is in turn partially wrapped with an outer helical insulator or spacer and enclosed within an outer metal tube for forming the path of the aqueous solution to be treated.
It is still another object of the invention to provide an improved system for electrolytic treatment of liquid which applies a DC voltage across the just describes plurality of rods and tubes which act either as cathodes or anodes.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an improved system for electrolytic treatment of liquid which applies sequential electric fields of different directions to the plurality of rods and tubes just described.
It is yet another object of the instant invention to provide an improved system for electrolytic treatment of liquids which treats specified rods or tubes for increasing their lives and for decreasing the power supply from the DC voltage source.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide methods for treatment of various liquid sources in accordance with the apparatus of the invention, as well as in accordance with apparatus of the aforementioned patents to Liggett, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,293,400 and 4,378,276.